Toolkit for law teachers

UKCLE’s Toolkit for law teachers aims to be a unique resource supporting law teachers in delivering high quality learning and teaching. We decided to develop the toolkit after running face to face events for new law teachers over a number of years – in short, you told us there was a real need for a resource like this.

This ambitious project is focused on developing an interactive, subject specific, online toolkit divided into thematic, modular units, each addressing a specific aspect of learning and teaching in law. Core delivery will be through webcasts, with linked resources and activities supported by a set of downloadable materials.

The following modules are planned, with the first two expected to go live in Summer 2011:

1. Small group teaching
2. Large group teaching
3. Assessment
4. Student support
5. E-learning
6. Skills-based learning

In addition to its topic specific focus each module will reflect certain pervasive themes:

• assessment – including assessing student performance/participation, online assessment and assessing different kinds of performance and skills
• diversity – modules will take into account diversity perspectives and all materials will be checked to ensure they satisfy accessibility criteria
• research-based learning – making students participants in a legal/socio-legal research process, a form of active learning
• substantive law – the toolkit’s USP is that it is a discipline-specific guide, and examples drawn from law teaching will be included wherever possible

Each unit will comprise the following elements:

• a webcast with accompanying slides
• learning activities and self assessment exercises
• additional audio or visual material, for example a particular teaching method in action
• supporting downloadable materials

Input from new law teachers themselves has come from UKCLE’s Toolkit for law teaching seminar series, as well as from a needs survey sent to staff with less than one year’s experience in autumn 2006. Additional funding has been secured through the City Solicitors’ Educational Trust, with equipment supplied through the JISC TechDis HEAT Scheme.

Last Modified: 23 February 2011